President Marcos said the government must “catch up” with private sector innovations in renewable energy, as he witnessed the energization of the country’s first hybrid agro-solar and battery storage system in Tuy, Batangas.

Marcos said this as he led the launch of Citicore Solar Batangas 1 on Monday, Sept. 15.

In his speech, the President reaffirmed his administration’s commitment to advancing renewable energy in the Philippines, assuring continued efforts to attract more investments in the said sector and streamline project implementation in the country.

“This is what we… the government has to catch up to the technology that our private sector partners are providing,” he said.

The Batangas project is the country’s first to use agrivoltaics — allowing crops to be grown on the same land where solar panels are installed. Marcos said this resolves the old tension between clean energy and agriculture.

“Nababawasan ang kumpetisyon sa lupa ng agrikultura at enerhiya. Kayang pagsabayin ang pagsulong ng food security at renewable energy (Competition for land between agriculture and energy is reduced. We can pursue food security and renewable energy together),” he said.

He praised the project as proof that “kapag may malasakit, may paraan (where there is care, there is a way).”

The Lumbangan and Luntal solar power projects of Citicore are expected to provide up to 197 megawatts of renewable energy, supported by a 320 megawatt-hour battery storage system.

The output could power as many as 158,000 households and reduce over 265,000 tons of carbon dioxide emissions annually — equivalent to removing thousands of vehicles from the road.

“Mas malinis ang hangin, mas ligtas ang ating kapaligiran (The air will be cleaner, our environment safer),” President Marcos said.

Marcos also welcomed Citicore’s commitment to expand its clean energy portfolio by five gigawatts in the next five years.

“You made a mistake mentioning the five gigawatts. Nabanggit mo na, wala na, wala nang atrasan ‘yan (You mentioned it, so there’s no turning back now),” the President quipped.

He added that Citicore aims to complete the country’s first one-gigawatt solar project this year, a scale never before achieved in the Philippines.

In line with this, President Marcos said his administration is fast-tracking approvals for renewable energy projects through the Energy Virtual One-Stop Shop and designated green lanes.

He also tasked the Department of Energy (DOE) and the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) to ensure transmission lines and infrastructure keep up with new projects.

“Be assured that the Department of Energy will continue to implement measures that drive investments in the sector and expedite the approval of renewable energy projects,” he said.